Sunday, October 30, 2011
October 30, 2011
20th Sunday after Pentecost
Year A
Matthew 23:1-12
Are you a professional or amateur Christian?
The Sports world today
There is a lot going on in the sports world today. I don’t want to get in trouble again by sounding to knowledgeable. But I know that the St. Louis Cardinals just on the World Series, the Bears are 4/3, and that the basketball season has not started benefits. We love our sports – sports are a big part of life wherever you go in the world.
Young Boys playing soccer and professional soccer team
One of the most beautiful pictures that I got in South Africa was a picture of the boys playing soccer on the beach promenade. There were playing in the dark, and many of the boys did not have shoes on, they didn’t have any fancy equipment. All they had was a ball and a desire to play.
That seems true of boys everywhere – they don’t need any fancy equipment, as long as they have a ball – they will play their game. And usually it is a very respectful, orderly game.
Rev. Trevor Hudson is one of my spiritual leaders. He is a white Methodist pastor from South Africa. I first heard him at the 2007 World Methodist Conference in South Korea. And got a chance to study under him personally as a part of our spiritual retreat for pastors for the last two years. At our last gathering two weeks ago, he talked about the boys of South Africa, who are willing to pick up a game of soccer wherever they can, just as long as they have a ball. He contrasted that to the national soccer team – professionals- those who get paid to play soccer. They are now on strike- because they want more money. Sounds like a familiar story here in America – with the professional basketball players being locked out, and yet there are boys here on the streets who just want to play basketball.
Being that Rev. Hudson was talking to a group of clergy – he had a warning for us, not to take our jobs too seriously. Not to become such a professional Christian that you are more concerned about your salary- than you are about serving God. When there are people out there who are serving, just simply for the love of God.
Trevor’s talk on being a professional or amateur
But I want to talk a little more this morning about what it means to be a professional, and what it means to be an amateur. Because I think that issue goes far beyond the issue of the service of clergy and the service of laity. There are lots of laity who get stuck on being professional Christians. Their whole identity starts to revolve around the titles that they hold the pew that they sit in, the donations that they have made. They start to believe that God owes them for the service that they give, instead of just doing things for the love of service and the love of God.
Rev. Hudson’s message to us was to always remain an amateur in your heart. To be in service to God, just for the love of it, and not so much for how God has blessed us.
The Occupy Movement
Another big story in the news seems to be these Occupy movements. It started out as occupy Wall Street in New York, and then the next thing I know that was an Occupy Chicago, when we were in Maryland – the news talked of Occupy Baltimore. When I was in Nashville – there was an occupy Nashville. And now I hear that St. Paul’s Cathedral in London is shut down because there is an Occupy London.
But I have to admit that I have a hard time with that whole concept of only 1% of the world holds all of the wealth and that I am a part of the 99%. One of my colleagues made a comment about how she was a part of the 99% because everything that she had in life she had to earn and had to work hard every day to earn it. But the trouble I had with her statement was that she just got this big promotion – she may have to work hard every day – but she earns over $100,000 a year. She has a PHD – she was a fantastic job, she owns her own home, she has her own business in spite of that, she just picked up and moved to Boston. She may be a part of the 99% but she is blessed pretty well.
When we look outside of our American bubble – there are people in the world who don’t have anything. They are starving, they have lost everything, they are worried about their families, and they are living in tents. – And yet they go to church every Sunday and them thank God for what they do have. They love God in spite of the tough times. Who is the professional Christian and who is the amateur who serves out of love for God?
Why I don’t need to participate
People have asked me if I am going to be a part of the occupy Chicago movement – and at this moment I truly don’t need to be a part of the 99%. Yes I am struggling, just I have debt to pay, yes I understand the injustice that I have suffered in the world – but on the other hand I have a safe house to live in, the heat is on, there is food in the refrigerator, and there is gas in my car. Now if I were to lose any of that I may be tempted to go sleep outside in the cold and take of messing up my record by getting arrested for trespasses. But as far as I am concerned, I am truly blessed – with what God has given me. There are too many people who are much worse off than me, to cry about what I don’t have.
Who is the professional and who is the amateur?
Jesus and the pharisees
It would appear that in our gospel lesson today that Jesus has a message for professional Christians.
We know that Jesus has been arguing back and forth with the Pharisees, while he is in Jerusalem. In order to be a Pharisee you had to go through rigorous study for years. We have no record that Jesus ever went through all of that training, and yet he had the nerve to go out into the streets and teach the masses. Who was the professional – and who was the amateur? For awhile Jesus took that questioning, but now he comes down hard on the Pharisees- telling his disciples not to be like them. The three problems that Jesus had with the disciples was that they we overly concerned about titles and their places of honor, they made up stringent rules for others to follow, and they didn’t practice what they were preaching to others. There is a saying which says that if you want to know what is in a person’s heart – don’t watch their mouth – watch their feet.
On the other hand Jesus says that they are on the Moses seat – they know what they are talking about. They are right in their teaching. The problem is they don’t live it themselves. Were they being professionals or amateurs?
Pharisees are laity
Now you have to also know that Pharisees were not clergy. They were intentional lay persons. They took a vow in their everyday lives to uphold the laws of God. There were 613 laws of God – they vowed to live according to all of them – to be an example to others – to help them understand that it was possible to do. That God’s laws ordered your life, and made it better.
When Jesus was alive, there were many groups of committed laity groups – the Sadducees, the Herodians, the Essenes. When the temple was destroyed in 70 AD all of these groups died out. But it was the Pharisees who held onto the Torah faith. They remained faithful in their task – to show others that it was possible to hold onto God’s law even in the midst of tough times. Their faith became rabbinical Judaism – that still maintains living out those laws today.
At the same time they were developing what it means to be a modern Jew. The disciples were establishing the church. Matthew was writing his gospel – long after Jesus was gone.
Matthew is really criticizing church folk
The church people did what we church people do best – we look at other people and criticize them and talk about how glad we are that we don’t have to live like that. Matthew’s church loved to hear Jesus talk about the Pharisees. Don’t do what the Pharisees do – they love to sit in honored places in the synagogue, the love to wear big phylacteries,
But what happens when we replace Pharisees with church leader, and synagogue with place of worship and phylacteries with our devotional material?
A criticism of them becomes a criticism of us. What Matthew was really asking the church was – who was the professional and who was the amateur? Christians become the ones who say the right things, but don’t really live it. The only one worthy of a title is God as Our Lord, the only teacher we have is Jesus Christ, and the only greatness we have is on our desire to serve others.
We are to lead through humility
We have to lead through humility, generosity, and equality. Not our titles, authority, and expectations.
It was the beginning of the school year, and Mr. Jones needed to be there to help the freshman in college move into his dorms. His wife was worried about his working in the hot sun all day. But he told her that was what he needed to do. He helped family after family. And being a black man in the south, the families assumed that he was a part of the custodial staff obligated to help out. When the day was almost over he invited some parents to sit down and rest and have a coke with him. Someone asked if he was helping because he had a child starting school. He responded that in a sense – they all were his children. He was the new president of the university.
What does it mean to be a professional Christian? What does it mean to be an amateur?
We are both professional and amateur
Anthony Munoz – played for the Cincinnati Bengals. He was a 3 time NFL offensive player of the year. Undoubtedly he is a professional athlete. Yet he turned down the chance to do an interview for Playboy magazine. His reason was that it came down to his relationship with God. He had read the bible, he heard to teachings of Jesus, and he was very clear about what God wanted him to do.
Who was a professional? And who was an amateur in the word because he loved God?
The truth is I think that whether we are clergy or lay – I think God calls us to be both a professional and an amateur. Professional in that Loving God is what we do for a living. We are to uphold the high moral standard of our teacher, Jesus Christ. We are to receive our blessings, and we can claim the title of a child of God.
But we must always be amateurs in our hearts – always do it for the love of God.
Let us pray….
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Leave the Son Alone
October 23, 2011
1 Thessalonians 2:1-8
Matthew 22:34-46
Nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost
“Leave the Son Alone”
Year A
How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, ...........
So begins one of the most well know love poems in the entire English
language. Elizabeth Barrett Browning wrote this poem, and many others,
to her husband Robert while they were secretly courting. She could
hardly believe that the handsome Browning truly loved her, for she was
an invalid. She only showed the poems to him after their
marriage and he encouraged their publication because he considered them
the finest sonnets written since William Shakespeare’s penned his.
“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your
soul, and with all your mind.”
And “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.
These are probably some of the most well known words of scripture. They
are not unique to Christianity though as words like them are to be found
in many different religious traditions.
How do I love thee, let me count the ways. Someone asked that question of us, way before Elizabeth Barrett Browning or Shakespeare. God asks that question of us each and every day. God does everything that God can to show us that he loves us. He courts our hearts and souls in many ways. How do we acknowledge the love letters that God sends us. The beauty of fall, a love letter from God. The nudge to get up in the morning, a love letter from God, a friend that you haven’t heard from in awhile, a love letter from God.
God sent an even more sentimental love letter to the world, when God sent God’s son to the world, and allowed him to die on the cross, for us – we were saved even before we were sinners. Because God loves us.
What does the word Love mean today? How do we define it? In answer to my question, Sherry, my son's wife, sent me the results of a question-and-answer session held by a group of professional people with an bunch of 4 to 8-year olds, where they asked them, "What does love mean?" Some of the answers I selected will both amuse and startle you.
Karl, age 5, says: "Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving lotion and they go out and smell each other."
Elaine, age 5, says: "Love is when Mommy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer then Robert Redford."
Mary Ann, age 4, says: "Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day."
Tommy, age 6, says: "Love is like a little old man and a little old woman who are still friends even after they know each other so well."
Bobby, age 5, says: "Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen."
Jenny, age 7, says: "There are two kinds of love. God's love. Our love. But God makes both kinds."
That last answer is worthy of a philosopher. Maybe we should listen to children more than we do. They see the world around them with clear, fresh eyes, and interpret it with clear, fresh minds.
Many of us as adults couldn’t come up with a better definition of love – sometimes adults just don’t know what love is. And we express our ignorance in the midst of what we call our wisdom.
The Pharisees thought they were being wise in their questioning of Jesus. We have been going through this for a few weeks now. Jesus arrived in Jerusalem, he started teaching the masses. There would have been nothing wrong with that – but they started listening, they started having hope, they were moving beyond the despair that had held them hostage. Life was going on, and as religious leaders of the community- they had nothing to do with it. And they needed to know more about this man. Was he really a jew? More importantly, was he teaching orthodox teachings? Or was he just misleading all of these people? So the questions started. Remember – by what authority are you speaking these things? Is it okay to give God money that is given to man? – and in this text we get the most important question of them all. What is the greatest commandment? - do you all know? Love - love the lord your God with all of your heart, your soul, your mind. With everything that you are. Jesus adds the second commandment to it – you must love your neighbor as you love yourself. In other words, if you don’t love he people around you, then you really don’t love God. Two different loves – that cant be separated. They have to come hand in hand.
But I want to stick to my point for a minute. We have moved from love to questions. A nobel peace prize winning scientist was asked about his success. He said that it all came down to questions. When he would come home from school, his mother would not ask how was school, she was not interested in hearing about what he learned that day. The one question that she would ask – what question did you ask today. His interest in his learning came down to his questions. As an adult he said that his entire career came down to learning how to ask good questions.
By what authority do you speak, who is more important God or man, even what is the greatest commandment – are all good questions. And the truth is they may not have been trying to hurt Jesus by asking him these questions. To ask someone a question of faith is the greatest honor that you could bestow on them. They would ask these questions of anyone. Their relationship with God was determined by their ability to question God. Do you really want to destroy your people? God why have you forsaken me? My favorite one – God how long before you vindicate me? God loved his people enough to answer their questions. I just got a bit of jewish wisdom the other day – the power of our prayer in in our belief that God hears us our prayers, and will answer them. We question god each time that we pray. God is always obliged to answer – now that is love.
The good news is that Jesus is able to answer all of those questions. He gives the right answers. He has read the scriptures, he has talked with the rabbis, he has prayed to God – so he is able to give the “right” answer. Yes he is a jew, yes his understanding of life is orthodox, yes he does love God. Jesus even has a question of his own – The messiah – whose son is he? Is he the son of God or the son of David? He references psalm 110 – when he asks why David calls his own son My Lord? Matthew has already proven that Jesus is the son of David – he comes from his lineage. Matthew does better, not only is Jesus a son of David – Matthew shows that he is the son of Abraham, he is the son of adam – he is the son of God. He gets his jewishness directly from the source. The creater of the questions. Questions designed to bring us all closer to God.
There is nothing wrong with asking questions. You don’t have to be afraid of an enemy who is willing to ask you questions – if they are willing to ask you questions that means that they are willing to be engaged. They are willing to have some type of relationship with you. The problem begins when they stop asking questions. When they stop asking questions, you cant read them.you don’t know what is going on. You don’t know what they are planning next. Unfortunately for Jesus – these were the last questions that they would ask. The conversation ends. Scripture says that when Jesus asked them about eh messiah – no one had an answer. “No one was able to give him an answer, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions.” Jesus continues to teach and to give parables – but the Pharisees have stopped listening…..what does that mean? What are they plotting against him?
But let me ask you another question - what does it mean to be an apostle? Do you know the difference between an apostle and a disciple? I have been told that a disciple is a follower of Jesus. An apostle is someone who has seen Jesus for with their own eyes. Someone who received their call directly from Jesus.
So if Paul never met Jesus face to face – how can he be an apostle? Good question. It was a question that many asked Paul – and it seems that Paul spent his ministry answering that question. He didn’t see Jesus in the Flesh, but he knew Christ in the spirit. In 1 thessalonians Paul says that he comes as an apostle of Christ. I hope that I will have more time to talk about Pauls ministry to Thessalonica. Salonica as it is called, is a really cool large urban city, with a unique ministry. But our theme for today is the love of God. What does it mean to love God? How do we show the love of God? For Paul to love God is to live God, and if we live God we are an apostle – a witness to Christ in any age.
Not everyone who hears Paul likes him or welcomes him. Sometimes the gospel can challenge us in ways that we don’t want to deal with. But the gospel is not about us – it is aboutGod. Spreading it is not our message – it is God’s message.
In the face of resistance – Paul gives us this example of being an apostle. In every other epistles Paul will verbally defind his apostleship. Today he gives us an example. To be a witness to God. To be an authentic follower of Christ – we have to show kindness, integrity, acceptance and courage. In the midst of people who didn’t want him, Paul gave himself and all that he was. He was an authentic Christian, because he knew what it meant to love others – show kindness, integrity, acceptance and courage.
what is the greatest commandment – love the lord your God with all of your heart, mind and soul. What is the second – love your neighbor as you love yourself.
What does it mean to love the lord? Spread the gospel with all that you all – show kindess, integrity, acceptance and courage. Let us pray…..
1 Thessalonians 2:1-8
Matthew 22:34-46
Nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost
“Leave the Son Alone”
Year A
How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, ...........
So begins one of the most well know love poems in the entire English
language. Elizabeth Barrett Browning wrote this poem, and many others,
to her husband Robert while they were secretly courting. She could
hardly believe that the handsome Browning truly loved her, for she was
an invalid. She only showed the poems to him after their
marriage and he encouraged their publication because he considered them
the finest sonnets written since William Shakespeare’s penned his.
“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your
soul, and with all your mind.”
And “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.
These are probably some of the most well known words of scripture. They
are not unique to Christianity though as words like them are to be found
in many different religious traditions.
How do I love thee, let me count the ways. Someone asked that question of us, way before Elizabeth Barrett Browning or Shakespeare. God asks that question of us each and every day. God does everything that God can to show us that he loves us. He courts our hearts and souls in many ways. How do we acknowledge the love letters that God sends us. The beauty of fall, a love letter from God. The nudge to get up in the morning, a love letter from God, a friend that you haven’t heard from in awhile, a love letter from God.
God sent an even more sentimental love letter to the world, when God sent God’s son to the world, and allowed him to die on the cross, for us – we were saved even before we were sinners. Because God loves us.
What does the word Love mean today? How do we define it? In answer to my question, Sherry, my son's wife, sent me the results of a question-and-answer session held by a group of professional people with an bunch of 4 to 8-year olds, where they asked them, "What does love mean?" Some of the answers I selected will both amuse and startle you.
Karl, age 5, says: "Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving lotion and they go out and smell each other."
Elaine, age 5, says: "Love is when Mommy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer then Robert Redford."
Mary Ann, age 4, says: "Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day."
Tommy, age 6, says: "Love is like a little old man and a little old woman who are still friends even after they know each other so well."
Bobby, age 5, says: "Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen."
Jenny, age 7, says: "There are two kinds of love. God's love. Our love. But God makes both kinds."
That last answer is worthy of a philosopher. Maybe we should listen to children more than we do. They see the world around them with clear, fresh eyes, and interpret it with clear, fresh minds.
Many of us as adults couldn’t come up with a better definition of love – sometimes adults just don’t know what love is. And we express our ignorance in the midst of what we call our wisdom.
The Pharisees thought they were being wise in their questioning of Jesus. We have been going through this for a few weeks now. Jesus arrived in Jerusalem, he started teaching the masses. There would have been nothing wrong with that – but they started listening, they started having hope, they were moving beyond the despair that had held them hostage. Life was going on, and as religious leaders of the community- they had nothing to do with it. And they needed to know more about this man. Was he really a jew? More importantly, was he teaching orthodox teachings? Or was he just misleading all of these people? So the questions started. Remember – by what authority are you speaking these things? Is it okay to give God money that is given to man? – and in this text we get the most important question of them all. What is the greatest commandment? - do you all know? Love - love the lord your God with all of your heart, your soul, your mind. With everything that you are. Jesus adds the second commandment to it – you must love your neighbor as you love yourself. In other words, if you don’t love he people around you, then you really don’t love God. Two different loves – that cant be separated. They have to come hand in hand.
But I want to stick to my point for a minute. We have moved from love to questions. A nobel peace prize winning scientist was asked about his success. He said that it all came down to questions. When he would come home from school, his mother would not ask how was school, she was not interested in hearing about what he learned that day. The one question that she would ask – what question did you ask today. His interest in his learning came down to his questions. As an adult he said that his entire career came down to learning how to ask good questions.
By what authority do you speak, who is more important God or man, even what is the greatest commandment – are all good questions. And the truth is they may not have been trying to hurt Jesus by asking him these questions. To ask someone a question of faith is the greatest honor that you could bestow on them. They would ask these questions of anyone. Their relationship with God was determined by their ability to question God. Do you really want to destroy your people? God why have you forsaken me? My favorite one – God how long before you vindicate me? God loved his people enough to answer their questions. I just got a bit of jewish wisdom the other day – the power of our prayer in in our belief that God hears us our prayers, and will answer them. We question god each time that we pray. God is always obliged to answer – now that is love.
The good news is that Jesus is able to answer all of those questions. He gives the right answers. He has read the scriptures, he has talked with the rabbis, he has prayed to God – so he is able to give the “right” answer. Yes he is a jew, yes his understanding of life is orthodox, yes he does love God. Jesus even has a question of his own – The messiah – whose son is he? Is he the son of God or the son of David? He references psalm 110 – when he asks why David calls his own son My Lord? Matthew has already proven that Jesus is the son of David – he comes from his lineage. Matthew does better, not only is Jesus a son of David – Matthew shows that he is the son of Abraham, he is the son of adam – he is the son of God. He gets his jewishness directly from the source. The creater of the questions. Questions designed to bring us all closer to God.
There is nothing wrong with asking questions. You don’t have to be afraid of an enemy who is willing to ask you questions – if they are willing to ask you questions that means that they are willing to be engaged. They are willing to have some type of relationship with you. The problem begins when they stop asking questions. When they stop asking questions, you cant read them.you don’t know what is going on. You don’t know what they are planning next. Unfortunately for Jesus – these were the last questions that they would ask. The conversation ends. Scripture says that when Jesus asked them about eh messiah – no one had an answer. “No one was able to give him an answer, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions.” Jesus continues to teach and to give parables – but the Pharisees have stopped listening…..what does that mean? What are they plotting against him?
But let me ask you another question - what does it mean to be an apostle? Do you know the difference between an apostle and a disciple? I have been told that a disciple is a follower of Jesus. An apostle is someone who has seen Jesus for with their own eyes. Someone who received their call directly from Jesus.
So if Paul never met Jesus face to face – how can he be an apostle? Good question. It was a question that many asked Paul – and it seems that Paul spent his ministry answering that question. He didn’t see Jesus in the Flesh, but he knew Christ in the spirit. In 1 thessalonians Paul says that he comes as an apostle of Christ. I hope that I will have more time to talk about Pauls ministry to Thessalonica. Salonica as it is called, is a really cool large urban city, with a unique ministry. But our theme for today is the love of God. What does it mean to love God? How do we show the love of God? For Paul to love God is to live God, and if we live God we are an apostle – a witness to Christ in any age.
Not everyone who hears Paul likes him or welcomes him. Sometimes the gospel can challenge us in ways that we don’t want to deal with. But the gospel is not about us – it is aboutGod. Spreading it is not our message – it is God’s message.
In the face of resistance – Paul gives us this example of being an apostle. In every other epistles Paul will verbally defind his apostleship. Today he gives us an example. To be a witness to God. To be an authentic follower of Christ – we have to show kindness, integrity, acceptance and courage. In the midst of people who didn’t want him, Paul gave himself and all that he was. He was an authentic Christian, because he knew what it meant to love others – show kindness, integrity, acceptance and courage.
what is the greatest commandment – love the lord your God with all of your heart, mind and soul. What is the second – love your neighbor as you love yourself.
What does it mean to love the lord? Spread the gospel with all that you all – show kindess, integrity, acceptance and courage. Let us pray…..
Sunday, October 09, 2011
Praise is what we do
Exodus 32:1-14
Philippians 4:1-9
17th Sunday After Pentecost
Year A
“Praise is what we do”
The Christian Boxer
Two men were driving the streets of Chicago. One cuts off the other one – as happens every day, lots of times here in the city. The man who was cut off he gets upset, he drives in front of the other man, stops , gets out of the car, and feels he is going to give the man a piece of his mind. He starts yelling and telling the man not to cut him off. The other man very politely apologizes, confesses that he was in a hurry and was not paying attention to what he was doing. Satisfied that he has gave the man a piece of his mind and that justice had been served, he gets back in his car and drives off with a little swagger.
His passenger is silent for a while, as he had been the whole time that this scenario had played out - after the man has driven off. The passenger asks if he knew who that was who he had just argued with. The driver, still high on his success, says, I really don’t care who that man was – he had no right to cut me off like that, and I needed to let him know that.
The passenger continues – that was the golden gloves featherweight boxing champion of the world. His hands are a legal deathly weapon. If he had chosen to get into a fight with you –you wouldn’t be sitting here now, you would not have had a chance. By the grace of God – he chose to be nice to you – even though he didn’t have to.
What does it mean to be a Christian in an Unchristian world?
That is the dilemma that we face each and every day as Christians – what does it mean to be Christian in an unchristian world. Philippians 4:4 says rejoice in the lord always – again I say rejoice. How am I supposed to maintain my joy – when every one around me is complaining. How am I supposed to preach the good news – when every you go there is bad news.
My favorite chapter
I am just full of this chapter –because it tells everything we need to know about what it means to be a Christian. The secrets to a Christian life. The secrets are rejoice, be gentle, pray, think. In the greek, Paul actually says dwell – think, meditate, contemplate long and hard, take the time to pray, before you respond.
Finally beloved, whatsoever is true, whatsoever is honorable, whatsoever is just, whatsoever is pure, whatsoever is pleasing, whatsoever is commendable, if there is any arête - any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think or as Paul says dwell about these things.
Important words for me, because not only are they Paul’s advice to us – but this verse is the mission statement of my alma mater – northwestern. Quacumque Sunt Vera – latin for whatsoever things are true.
My visit to Philippi
I visited Philippians. It is on ignatia way – the main highway going through Greece – six hours north on that highway and you get to Macedonia. Our tour bus had to just pull of on the side of the road. We were literally on the side if the road buying souvenirs. The middle school boys in front of us highly recommended a book that we just had to have on greek history. Sex in greek times. I never every read the book until few years ago. Now I know why you should never trust the interest of middle school boys- the book was a lot more about sex than it was about history.
The remains of philippi were very small –we saw the jail where Paul and Silas were locked up, and freed by the jailer. We saw the courthouse, the marketplace, and there we several churches in the town. The congregation of church A had decided that they were going to build a church, but they were only going to use building techniques in the bible. They built the church building and the church fell down. They built the church again, and it fell down again. They built the church a third time, and a third time it fell down.
Church A at Philippi
The story goes Paul came in and preached to the congregation these verses. Whatever is true, honorable, just, pure, pleasing commendable and excellent – think on these things, use them apply them to your life. In order to build a solid building you have to use geometry. Geometry may be from the egytians, it may not be in the bible, it might be considered pagan knowledge – but it is still from God. it is true, it works, and you need it in order to build a solid building. If it has truth it is, it can only come from God.
God in the pagan virtue list
But the question remains, then how am I supposed to remain Christian in an unchristian world? Am I really supposed to value what the world values? Am I supposed to follow the ways of the world? One thing that we modern readers may not realize is that Paul intentionally list the virtues important to the Roman pagans – truth, honor, justice, purity, beauty, excellence. These are all of the things that the world holds dear. Virtues that any roman citizen should strive to meet.
Paul’s question to us is how is this list any different then what God requires of us. These are the same places that we find God – in truth, honor, justice, purity, when we admire the beauty of a rainbow – we are in awe because we know that is a sign that God is present. Many pictures of the leaves turning for the fall on facebook – with the caption of how we should admire the beauty of God.
But the more important lesson for us – is to remember that the true temple of God is not this building, the true temple of God is in inside of us. It is truly not what we do in here that makes us a Christian, it is what we do our there.
We think that we have to work at getting people to come in here with us. When paul is reminding us that we may have to go out there with them. There is a campaign within the united Methodist church – rethink church.
Rethink church
That story of the church in philippi – I thought it was interesting that I had never heard that story in the bible before. Was it true, or just a part of the folklore of the tourist industry of Greece. But it still tells an interesting truth about our behavior as Christians. It may not be true – but is a truth. Just as they felt that the only knowledge that they could use to build a church building had to be in the bible. We tend to think that the only knowledge of how to build a church has to be in our own understanding of what it means to be a Christian. If people don’t act the way we act, if people don’t worship the way we worship, if people are not interested in what we are interested in, then they must not be Christian. In the Philippians shortsighted, the building fell down. In our shortsidedness, our churches are dying. People are not coming in the door to be the church with us.
There is nothing wrong with our idea of being Christian – its is biblical – actually it is our interpretation of what is biblical. There is nothing wrong with that – Paul tells us to think and pray on these things. But we also have to expand our ideas of what it means to be Christian.
St Luke Choir
We were at St Luke UMC in Cambridge, MD. I was very impressed with the choir – they sang with a lot more rhythm than I have ever seen in a united Methodist choir. There was one little girl in front. It is okay to dance in the black church, and to sway a little bit. but as I was watching this one little girl – I couldn’t help but to think that she was shaking her hips a little too much and twisting a little too far. I couldn’t help but to think I am not so sure that she got that in church. That dancing she was doing wasn’t in the bible. But the point was – she was there – in church, singing the songs praising God.
The church was in the heart of an all black community. And we wondered, how many of those people in the community have any relationship with the church. Besides it being the place where they come to get food and other supplies. We are in the world, but not of the world – and we wonder why are churches are dying.
We tend to think that in order to be a part of our church – to one of us – you have to come to worship every Sunday – and then we will find something for you to do. And we wonder why our churches are dying. I heard on tv of a church right here in Englewood. A church of young adults – one was saying that he loved his church- because it was there hang out place. They spent all of their time during the week at church, so it was the logical place for them to go on Sunday. The church has to be more than a place to get services, the church has to be a place where people are safe to hang out and have fun in their everyday lives.
Paul message to us is that we have to rethink our definition of church. The church has to be a part of the world. The worlds values are God’s values. God created the world, God wants to save the world. God wants every person to actually live up to those values that have been instilled into the human heart.
We have to be the temple of God for the world
It is not enough for us to just sit here and pray that people come in. it is not enough for us to go outside and knock on doors and ask people to come in an join us. We are going to have to go and take the temple of God out into our lives. In who we are and how we treat people. And how we respond to to bad news of life.
Put your life to the test - if it is true, honorable, just, pure, pleasing, commendable, and excellent – then it is from God and worth our time and energy. We can incorporate it into our lives.
We are the presence of God for the world
How do we remain Christian in an unchristian world – take life one step further. Don’t just think – but pray. Don’t react – be gentle. And rejoice in the lord at all times for the lord is near.
A woman went to visit her friend in a retirement center – and she was impressed as she heard the choir giving a concert. Her friend responded you know that God is in this place. Her friend asked how did she know – because old people cant sing that good unless they have god is with them. The lesson for all of us – is to rejoice – rejoice in the lord always. Let us pray…..
Philippians 4:1-9
17th Sunday After Pentecost
Year A
“Praise is what we do”
The Christian Boxer
Two men were driving the streets of Chicago. One cuts off the other one – as happens every day, lots of times here in the city. The man who was cut off he gets upset, he drives in front of the other man, stops , gets out of the car, and feels he is going to give the man a piece of his mind. He starts yelling and telling the man not to cut him off. The other man very politely apologizes, confesses that he was in a hurry and was not paying attention to what he was doing. Satisfied that he has gave the man a piece of his mind and that justice had been served, he gets back in his car and drives off with a little swagger.
His passenger is silent for a while, as he had been the whole time that this scenario had played out - after the man has driven off. The passenger asks if he knew who that was who he had just argued with. The driver, still high on his success, says, I really don’t care who that man was – he had no right to cut me off like that, and I needed to let him know that.
The passenger continues – that was the golden gloves featherweight boxing champion of the world. His hands are a legal deathly weapon. If he had chosen to get into a fight with you –you wouldn’t be sitting here now, you would not have had a chance. By the grace of God – he chose to be nice to you – even though he didn’t have to.
What does it mean to be a Christian in an Unchristian world?
That is the dilemma that we face each and every day as Christians – what does it mean to be Christian in an unchristian world. Philippians 4:4 says rejoice in the lord always – again I say rejoice. How am I supposed to maintain my joy – when every one around me is complaining. How am I supposed to preach the good news – when every you go there is bad news.
My favorite chapter
I am just full of this chapter –because it tells everything we need to know about what it means to be a Christian. The secrets to a Christian life. The secrets are rejoice, be gentle, pray, think. In the greek, Paul actually says dwell – think, meditate, contemplate long and hard, take the time to pray, before you respond.
Finally beloved, whatsoever is true, whatsoever is honorable, whatsoever is just, whatsoever is pure, whatsoever is pleasing, whatsoever is commendable, if there is any arête - any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think or as Paul says dwell about these things.
Important words for me, because not only are they Paul’s advice to us – but this verse is the mission statement of my alma mater – northwestern. Quacumque Sunt Vera – latin for whatsoever things are true.
My visit to Philippi
I visited Philippians. It is on ignatia way – the main highway going through Greece – six hours north on that highway and you get to Macedonia. Our tour bus had to just pull of on the side of the road. We were literally on the side if the road buying souvenirs. The middle school boys in front of us highly recommended a book that we just had to have on greek history. Sex in greek times. I never every read the book until few years ago. Now I know why you should never trust the interest of middle school boys- the book was a lot more about sex than it was about history.
The remains of philippi were very small –we saw the jail where Paul and Silas were locked up, and freed by the jailer. We saw the courthouse, the marketplace, and there we several churches in the town. The congregation of church A had decided that they were going to build a church, but they were only going to use building techniques in the bible. They built the church building and the church fell down. They built the church again, and it fell down again. They built the church a third time, and a third time it fell down.
Church A at Philippi
The story goes Paul came in and preached to the congregation these verses. Whatever is true, honorable, just, pure, pleasing commendable and excellent – think on these things, use them apply them to your life. In order to build a solid building you have to use geometry. Geometry may be from the egytians, it may not be in the bible, it might be considered pagan knowledge – but it is still from God. it is true, it works, and you need it in order to build a solid building. If it has truth it is, it can only come from God.
God in the pagan virtue list
But the question remains, then how am I supposed to remain Christian in an unchristian world? Am I really supposed to value what the world values? Am I supposed to follow the ways of the world? One thing that we modern readers may not realize is that Paul intentionally list the virtues important to the Roman pagans – truth, honor, justice, purity, beauty, excellence. These are all of the things that the world holds dear. Virtues that any roman citizen should strive to meet.
Paul’s question to us is how is this list any different then what God requires of us. These are the same places that we find God – in truth, honor, justice, purity, when we admire the beauty of a rainbow – we are in awe because we know that is a sign that God is present. Many pictures of the leaves turning for the fall on facebook – with the caption of how we should admire the beauty of God.
But the more important lesson for us – is to remember that the true temple of God is not this building, the true temple of God is in inside of us. It is truly not what we do in here that makes us a Christian, it is what we do our there.
We think that we have to work at getting people to come in here with us. When paul is reminding us that we may have to go out there with them. There is a campaign within the united Methodist church – rethink church.
Rethink church
That story of the church in philippi – I thought it was interesting that I had never heard that story in the bible before. Was it true, or just a part of the folklore of the tourist industry of Greece. But it still tells an interesting truth about our behavior as Christians. It may not be true – but is a truth. Just as they felt that the only knowledge that they could use to build a church building had to be in the bible. We tend to think that the only knowledge of how to build a church has to be in our own understanding of what it means to be a Christian. If people don’t act the way we act, if people don’t worship the way we worship, if people are not interested in what we are interested in, then they must not be Christian. In the Philippians shortsighted, the building fell down. In our shortsidedness, our churches are dying. People are not coming in the door to be the church with us.
There is nothing wrong with our idea of being Christian – its is biblical – actually it is our interpretation of what is biblical. There is nothing wrong with that – Paul tells us to think and pray on these things. But we also have to expand our ideas of what it means to be Christian.
St Luke Choir
We were at St Luke UMC in Cambridge, MD. I was very impressed with the choir – they sang with a lot more rhythm than I have ever seen in a united Methodist choir. There was one little girl in front. It is okay to dance in the black church, and to sway a little bit. but as I was watching this one little girl – I couldn’t help but to think that she was shaking her hips a little too much and twisting a little too far. I couldn’t help but to think I am not so sure that she got that in church. That dancing she was doing wasn’t in the bible. But the point was – she was there – in church, singing the songs praising God.
The church was in the heart of an all black community. And we wondered, how many of those people in the community have any relationship with the church. Besides it being the place where they come to get food and other supplies. We are in the world, but not of the world – and we wonder why are churches are dying.
We tend to think that in order to be a part of our church – to one of us – you have to come to worship every Sunday – and then we will find something for you to do. And we wonder why our churches are dying. I heard on tv of a church right here in Englewood. A church of young adults – one was saying that he loved his church- because it was there hang out place. They spent all of their time during the week at church, so it was the logical place for them to go on Sunday. The church has to be more than a place to get services, the church has to be a place where people are safe to hang out and have fun in their everyday lives.
Paul message to us is that we have to rethink our definition of church. The church has to be a part of the world. The worlds values are God’s values. God created the world, God wants to save the world. God wants every person to actually live up to those values that have been instilled into the human heart.
We have to be the temple of God for the world
It is not enough for us to just sit here and pray that people come in. it is not enough for us to go outside and knock on doors and ask people to come in an join us. We are going to have to go and take the temple of God out into our lives. In who we are and how we treat people. And how we respond to to bad news of life.
Put your life to the test - if it is true, honorable, just, pure, pleasing, commendable, and excellent – then it is from God and worth our time and energy. We can incorporate it into our lives.
We are the presence of God for the world
How do we remain Christian in an unchristian world – take life one step further. Don’t just think – but pray. Don’t react – be gentle. And rejoice in the lord at all times for the lord is near.
A woman went to visit her friend in a retirement center – and she was impressed as she heard the choir giving a concert. Her friend responded you know that God is in this place. Her friend asked how did she know – because old people cant sing that good unless they have god is with them. The lesson for all of us – is to rejoice – rejoice in the lord always. Let us pray…..
Sunday, October 02, 2011
What Lies Ahead
October 2, 2011
Year A
Philippians 3:4-14
Matthew 21:33-46
Sixteenth Sunday After Pentecost
“What Lies Ahead”
God will prevail
God will prevail. That is the message this morning, God will prevail. Whatever it is that you are going through. Whatever questions you have, whatever it is that you are worried about – God will prevail.
God will help me through whatever it is. And for most of my life, God will prevail in spite of me and whatever I have done.
I can make the best plans; I can have to best of intentions. I can set out to do what I think needs to be done, and God knows otherwise, and does what is best for me anyway.
Anyone who has lived for a while knows the twists and turns of God. We twist, and God turns.
The fable of Angel – we are just tenants
There is a fable about the Angel Gabriel who has just come from surveying the earth and its inhabitants when he reports to God. "Lord, it's my duty to inform you that you're the possessor of a choice piece of real estate known as planet earth. But the tenants you've leased it out to are destroying it. In another few years, it won't be fit to live in. They have polluted your rivers. The air is fouled with the stench of their over-consumerism. They frequently kill one another, and all the prophets you've sent to them calling for an accounting have met with violence. By any rule of sound management, Lord, you've got but one option." Then raising his trumpet to his lips, Gabriel asked, "Shall I sound the eviction notice now, sir?"
And God said…
We are just tenants
Another truth of life is that our life is that we are just tenants in this world. We don’t own anything – everything belongs to God. We are all living on borrowed time in a borrowed place. No matter how much we paid for it – it does not belong to us, and we can’t take it with us when we go. When it all is said and done, we are the tenants, and God is the owner.
Explanation of Matthew
Jesus addresses this issue in Matthew 21. He tells a parable of tenants, servants, the land owner, the vineyard, and fruit. In the Matthew story – the landowner sends servants to collect money from the tenants. They kill them all – finally they send his son, they kill him too. They think that if they ignore the servant, they can keep the profit for themselves. Not understanding that they can never take what does not belong to them.
Of course in Matthew – Jesus is talking about the Pharisees. Telling them that in spite of all of their knowledge, and attitude, and understanding – they are not God – and what they do is not eternal. The reference to the tenants murdering the son is a premonition to his going to the cross.
This story is in all of the gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke. This story is also in the gospel of Thomas. The gospel of Thomas is not considered a part of our bible. But it does not have the violence and killing. It is also believed to be the story closest to what Jesus would have actually said.
What the tenant farmers heard
His audience was the Pharisees – but it would have also been an audience of tenant farmers. People who have lived on family farms for years and years. But when the Romans came, they bought up those farms. They owned the land, but the families still used the land. And had to pay rent in order to live on their own land. These were people who understood that in life, that no matter how hard they worked, and did what they always did – they would never own the land. All of the work that they did – was for someone else. They were looking for a way to trust in God. No matter what the landowner thought – God would prevail.
Jesus also talking to the know it alls
But we can’t ignore that Jesus was also talking to the Pharisees. They thought they were on God’s side. They thought they knew who the messiah was. They thought they had spent their whole life looking –and would recognize him when he came. And yet they were the ones who did not get what Jesus was telling them. Last week Jesus says the first will be last and the last will be first. This week Jesus says that the cornerstone that the builders rejected- would be the most important stone. Of course he was speaking about himself. In Hebrew – ben means son, oben means stone. He was the stone the builders rejected.
Message for us today
The message for us tenant farmers today – is not to rely on our own understanding. God will prevail – in spite of ourselves. Have you noticed that the more you know – the more you realize that you don’t know? The more you think you understand God, the more you don’t understand God. The further ahead you get – you always have to take two steps back. God intended for it to be that way.
Man reevaluates his life while shaving
A man was shaving one morning – he noticed that he started to bleed – but there was no cut on his face. He went to the doctor- who told him that he had skin cancer.
Just the mention of that word forced him to reevaluate his whole life. What was it that was most important in his life? What were his priorities? Where was he in his life? Who was he? Where do I want to be?
Paul’s spiritual diagnosis
Paul says that the diagnosis does not always have to be physical. It can also be spiritual. That day came for him, when he had to take account of his life. And that day comes for all of us, when we realize that God will prevail. Not me. Paul tells us that God prevails – through Christ. And we have to put Christ as the most important thing in our lives. Not our identity, not what we think we know, not what we have achieved, but what we have done in the name of Christ.
Who am I – imperfect
Where have I been – in the past
Where do I need to be – in Christ.
Last week we learned that Christ emptied himself in order to be an example for us. So we have to empty ourselves of all of the things we think we have accomplished and replace that with Christ. God prevails through Christ, not us.
That puts everything else in perspective. We are just tenants in God’s world. What we do for ourselves is nothing. What we do for Christ is eternal.
I am looking forward
A friend of mine tells a very sad story of her father dying in the hospital. On her mother’s birthday – she went to visit him and he seemed very agitated, even though he was very sick. He told her to go to the hallmark store to buy his wife a card, and to bring it back so that he could sign it.
He signed it looking forward, with love Harold.
No one understood the message until he died. He was a Christian – he knew that god’s will would prevail over his life. Yet he knew that even in death – he could look forward to what Christ had in store for him.
Press on, move forward
God will prevail. In life we can follow Paul’s message for us – Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind, and straining forward to what lies ahead. I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus. Press on, move forward.
Let us pray…..
Year A
Philippians 3:4-14
Matthew 21:33-46
Sixteenth Sunday After Pentecost
“What Lies Ahead”
God will prevail
God will prevail. That is the message this morning, God will prevail. Whatever it is that you are going through. Whatever questions you have, whatever it is that you are worried about – God will prevail.
God will help me through whatever it is. And for most of my life, God will prevail in spite of me and whatever I have done.
I can make the best plans; I can have to best of intentions. I can set out to do what I think needs to be done, and God knows otherwise, and does what is best for me anyway.
Anyone who has lived for a while knows the twists and turns of God. We twist, and God turns.
The fable of Angel – we are just tenants
There is a fable about the Angel Gabriel who has just come from surveying the earth and its inhabitants when he reports to God. "Lord, it's my duty to inform you that you're the possessor of a choice piece of real estate known as planet earth. But the tenants you've leased it out to are destroying it. In another few years, it won't be fit to live in. They have polluted your rivers. The air is fouled with the stench of their over-consumerism. They frequently kill one another, and all the prophets you've sent to them calling for an accounting have met with violence. By any rule of sound management, Lord, you've got but one option." Then raising his trumpet to his lips, Gabriel asked, "Shall I sound the eviction notice now, sir?"
And God said…
We are just tenants
Another truth of life is that our life is that we are just tenants in this world. We don’t own anything – everything belongs to God. We are all living on borrowed time in a borrowed place. No matter how much we paid for it – it does not belong to us, and we can’t take it with us when we go. When it all is said and done, we are the tenants, and God is the owner.
Explanation of Matthew
Jesus addresses this issue in Matthew 21. He tells a parable of tenants, servants, the land owner, the vineyard, and fruit. In the Matthew story – the landowner sends servants to collect money from the tenants. They kill them all – finally they send his son, they kill him too. They think that if they ignore the servant, they can keep the profit for themselves. Not understanding that they can never take what does not belong to them.
Of course in Matthew – Jesus is talking about the Pharisees. Telling them that in spite of all of their knowledge, and attitude, and understanding – they are not God – and what they do is not eternal. The reference to the tenants murdering the son is a premonition to his going to the cross.
This story is in all of the gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke. This story is also in the gospel of Thomas. The gospel of Thomas is not considered a part of our bible. But it does not have the violence and killing. It is also believed to be the story closest to what Jesus would have actually said.
What the tenant farmers heard
His audience was the Pharisees – but it would have also been an audience of tenant farmers. People who have lived on family farms for years and years. But when the Romans came, they bought up those farms. They owned the land, but the families still used the land. And had to pay rent in order to live on their own land. These were people who understood that in life, that no matter how hard they worked, and did what they always did – they would never own the land. All of the work that they did – was for someone else. They were looking for a way to trust in God. No matter what the landowner thought – God would prevail.
Jesus also talking to the know it alls
But we can’t ignore that Jesus was also talking to the Pharisees. They thought they were on God’s side. They thought they knew who the messiah was. They thought they had spent their whole life looking –and would recognize him when he came. And yet they were the ones who did not get what Jesus was telling them. Last week Jesus says the first will be last and the last will be first. This week Jesus says that the cornerstone that the builders rejected- would be the most important stone. Of course he was speaking about himself. In Hebrew – ben means son, oben means stone. He was the stone the builders rejected.
Message for us today
The message for us tenant farmers today – is not to rely on our own understanding. God will prevail – in spite of ourselves. Have you noticed that the more you know – the more you realize that you don’t know? The more you think you understand God, the more you don’t understand God. The further ahead you get – you always have to take two steps back. God intended for it to be that way.
Man reevaluates his life while shaving
A man was shaving one morning – he noticed that he started to bleed – but there was no cut on his face. He went to the doctor- who told him that he had skin cancer.
Just the mention of that word forced him to reevaluate his whole life. What was it that was most important in his life? What were his priorities? Where was he in his life? Who was he? Where do I want to be?
Paul’s spiritual diagnosis
Paul says that the diagnosis does not always have to be physical. It can also be spiritual. That day came for him, when he had to take account of his life. And that day comes for all of us, when we realize that God will prevail. Not me. Paul tells us that God prevails – through Christ. And we have to put Christ as the most important thing in our lives. Not our identity, not what we think we know, not what we have achieved, but what we have done in the name of Christ.
Who am I – imperfect
Where have I been – in the past
Where do I need to be – in Christ.
Last week we learned that Christ emptied himself in order to be an example for us. So we have to empty ourselves of all of the things we think we have accomplished and replace that with Christ. God prevails through Christ, not us.
That puts everything else in perspective. We are just tenants in God’s world. What we do for ourselves is nothing. What we do for Christ is eternal.
I am looking forward
A friend of mine tells a very sad story of her father dying in the hospital. On her mother’s birthday – she went to visit him and he seemed very agitated, even though he was very sick. He told her to go to the hallmark store to buy his wife a card, and to bring it back so that he could sign it.
He signed it looking forward, with love Harold.
No one understood the message until he died. He was a Christian – he knew that god’s will would prevail over his life. Yet he knew that even in death – he could look forward to what Christ had in store for him.
Press on, move forward
God will prevail. In life we can follow Paul’s message for us – Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind, and straining forward to what lies ahead. I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus. Press on, move forward.
Let us pray…..
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